ESP Biography



SAM ALLON, MIT PhD student researching the immune system




Major: Chemistry

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: G

Picture of Sam Allon

Brief Biographical Sketch:

Not Available.



Past Classes

  (Clicking a class title will bring you to the course's section of the corresponding course catalog)

S14475: How the immune system works in Spark 2021 (Mar. 13 - 27, 2021)
How does the immune system protect us from infection? Which cell types are involved, and what are each of their jobs? What are the unsolved mysteries of the immune system?


S14011: How the immune system works in HSSP Summer 2020 (Jul. 11, 2020)
The brain is not the only part of your body that learns! Every day, cells in your adaptive immune system learn to recognize and fight bad viruses and bacteria. How do those cells do it, and what can we do to help them? In this course, you will find out!


Z13903: How to solve the climate crisis in Spark 2020 (Mar. 14 - 15, 2020)
We know that climate change is a big problem that seems to only get worse - so how can we actually solve it? In this class, we will discuss personal, technological, and political actions that can be taken.


S13738: How the immune system works in HSSP Spring 2020 (Feb. 29, 2020)
The brain is not the only part of your body that learns! Every day, cells in your adaptive immune system learn to recognize and fight bad viruses and bacteria. How do those cells do it, and what can we do to help them? In this course, you will find out!


Z13455: Climate change, climate action in Splash 2019 (Nov. 23 - 24, 2019)
What can be done to slow down and reverse the harmful effects of climate change? In this class, we will survey personal, technological, and policy actions that will make a difference.


S13088: Climate change, climate action in HSSP Summer 2019 (Jul. 07, 2019)
Human-caused climate change will impact every continent and ocean throughout the rest of this century -- and likely beyond. How do human-made emissions lead to climate change? How will climate change affect people's lives here and around the world? And what technologies and policies might we use to limit the damage?


S12603: How to solve climate change in Splash 2018 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2018)
An economist, a chemist, and 20-30 high school students will put their heads together to solve one of the most important problems of the century: climate change.


S12272: Networks everywhere! in HSSP Summer 2018 (Jun. 30, 2018)
What do cellular proteins, the human brain, and disease pandemics all have in common? They can all be described by networks - a concept that combines knowledge from science, math, and computer science. In this class, we will learn how networks can describe the world around us and help us solve some of the toughest problems our society faces.


S12058: Secrets of the Immune System in HSSP Spring 2018 (Feb. 24, 2018)
The brain is not the only part of your body that learns! Every day, cells in your adaptive immune system learn to recognize and fight bad viruses and bacteria. How do those cells do it, and what can we do to help them? In this course, you will find out!


S11597: How does the immune system learn? in Splash 2017 (Nov. 18 - 19, 2017)
On its surface, a deadly bacterium looks not-so-different from the cells of your body: a jiggling wall of proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids. How do the cells of the immune system (lacking eyes, ears, and minds of their own) identify threats and respond to them to keep us safe? How do they improve their response the next time that deadly bacterium shows up?


S11469: Secrets of the Adaptive Immune System in HSSP Summer 2017 (Jul. 09, 2017)
The brain is not the only part of your body that learns! Every day, cells in your adaptive immune system learn to recognize and fight bad viruses and bacteria. How do those cells do it, and what can we do to help them? In this course, you will find out!


L11397: PCR: the secret DNA copy machine in Spark 2017 (Mar. 11 - 12, 2017)
Come learn about Polymerase Chain Reaction, the magical technology that turns 1 piece of DNA into 2, 4, 8... one million! We will learn the chemistry of PCR and how it is used by scientists around the world.